Homosexuality in the Roman Catholic Church

Equivalent Love, Acceptance and JusticeToday the topic of homosexuality is often a controversial one around the world, but one that arises frequently none the less. It is becoming more and more socially acceptable for people all over the world to be open about their sexual orientations towards people of the same sex. It is now very clear and apparent that homosexuals worldwide come from all walks of life and take on nearly every single occupation and career. Many homosexuals have even come to make life long commitments to a single partner and raise families. However, homosexuals are repeatedly refused equal rights as heterosexuals, and are often discriminated against because of their sexual preferences. As an America, same sex marriage is a topic I hear almost daily when I am home. People all over my country are refused legal marriage licenses despite the fact that they live very similar lives to heterosexual couples and often raise children. Furthermore, as a Catholic I often hear condemnation of homosexuality, and even hear many people from my religion urging the government to continue to ban same sex marriage. Having many gay friends and acquaintances, and a homosexual uncle, the actions and thoughts of people in my country often upset me, and my religions teachings towards homosexuality sometimes confuse me. Therefore, I have researched the position of the Roman Catholic Church regarding not only homosexuality, but also same sex marriages. Throughout this essay, I will give an unbiased explanation of the Churches teachings that date back to the time of the Old Testament.

The Roman Catholic Church maintains that homosexual orientations are not necessarily sinful, but are “disordered” (Catechism). However, the church preserves that all homosexual activity is immoral and most often sinful (Catechism). The Vatican uses a very particular theological framework based in scripture to defend its strong stance against homosexuality. While traditionally the Church has adopted a strict policy of total rejection regarding homosexuality, in 1976 the Vatican came to accept that not all homosexuals’ sexual orientations are by choice, but rather many (most) homosexuals are born with their sexual preferences (Pope). Therefore, the church does not condemn sexual orientation without sexual action as sinful.

According to Catholic Doctrine, the stance that the Catholic Church has taken on homosexuality at first glance seems to be contradictory. After all, the Roman Catholic belief is that God created everything that is. Therefore, for those homosexuals who are born with their sexual orientation, did God not create them that way? When confronted with this issue, the Vatican not only acknowledges the fact that indeed God did create many people with homosexual orientations, but the Church also offers recommendations on how such people should live their lives. The church suggest that all people born with homosexual desires try to “correct” their homosexual “disorders,” by living a chaste life (Catechism). The church teaches that sexuality is a gift from God, and that creating both males and females is an essential part of God’s plan for humans to participate in his divine plan of love and life (Catechism). However, the Roman Catholic Church also believes that just like all gifts and freedoms of God, the sexuality of every person – despite his or her sexual preferences, can be challenged toward good or evil (Congegration).

While chastity may seem to be an extreme alternative, the Roman Catholic Church has very deep beliefs on sexuality based in scripture, and has exceptionally strict rules when it comes to sexual intercourse. However, in order to discuss the Catholic Church’s condemnation of homosexual acts, the Church’s position and beliefs regarding marriage must first be discussed. According to church doctrine, proper marriage only occurs between a man and a woman. The Vatican believes that a marriage takes place when one man and...

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...Homosexuality in the Church
With homosexuality being more visible and more accepted in our modern,
liberal society, the church, which has always been founded on very old and
very conservative views, must now struggle to decide where homosexual
Christians fit into the church. Several questions have been raised
surrounding this issue, such as the argument of right versus wrong, and the
debate on how people "become" gay.
Hayes and Furnish, in the first section of the book Homosexuality in the
Church, express their opposing views on whether or not the Bible clearly
answers the question of right or wrong. In examining various biblical
passages in order to prove their conflicting points of right or wrong, they
both come to one similar conclusion: one cannot simply use passages in the
Bible to prove without a shadow of a doubt that homosexuality is wrong, nor
to prove it should be an accepted part of the Christian lifestyle.
Hayes, a New Testament scholar, bases his discussions from a conversation he
held with his dying homosexual friend. Because of this, his views are much
more readable, and are also more substantial due to the context of his
views. Hayes and his friend both feel that the writings of the gay
apologists "did justice neither to the biblical text, nor the depressing
reality of the gay subculture (4)."
Furnish throughout his essay...

...﻿The CatholicChurch
The Church
-from the Latin word “ecclesia” and from the Greek word “ek- kalein” which means convocation or assembly
-It designates assembly of the people for the religious purpose.
-In Christian usage, the word “church”
The Church in God’s Plan
-God the Father created the whole universe, and chose to raise up men to share in his own divine life.
-God created the world for the sake of communion with his divine life, a communion brought about by the convocation of men in Christ and this convocation is the Church.
The Church Prepared in the Old Testament
-The remote preparation for this gathering together of the People of God begins when he calls Abraham and promises that he will become the father of a great people.
-The Israelites was elected as the People of God which is a sign of the future gathering of all nations.
The Church Instituted by Christ
-Christ accomplish the Father’s plan of salvation in the fullness of time.
-The Church was founded by the words and actions of Jesus Christ fulfilled by his redeeming cross and his resurrection.
The Church Revealed by the Holy Spirit
-The Holy Spirit was sent on the day of Pentecost in order that he might continually sanctify the Church.
-By nature the Church is missionary
-So that she can fulfill her mission, the...

...The CatholicChurch
Submitted to
Prof. Merle D. Valbuena
English Dept., CASS
MSU-Iligan Institute of Technology
By
Stephen John S. Brillantes
March 2005
Thesis Statement: The RomanCatholicChurch and the past and the present of strengthened Christianity.
I. Introduction
II. Organization and Structure
a. The Bishop
b. The Clergy
c. The Pope
d. The Cardinal
e. The Curia
f. The Eastern Rite Churches
III. Distinctive Doctrines
a. The Bible
b. The Traditions of the Church
c. Apostolic Succession
d. The Saints
IV. Worship and Practices
a. The Mass
b. The Sacraments
c. Current Related Issues
V. The Church History
a. The Early Church
b. The Medieval Church
c. The Modern Period Church
VI. Conclusion
Bibliography
The CatholicChurch
Introduction
The RomanCatholicChurch and the past and present of strengthened Christianity. This term paper will discuss about the RomanCatholicChurch, the largest single Christian body, composed of those Christians who acknowledge the supreme authority of the bishop of Rome, the pope, in matters of faith. The word catholic (Greek katholikos) means "universal" and has been used to designate the church since its...